Yesterday we lost our beautiful dog, Pancho. We are heartbroken.
We made the move, the house in Tallahassee is on sale (feel free to buy it, it’s beautiful). As we began unpacking, Pancho got really picky about the food he was eating. He then began to have constant nausea. After a vet visit and a blood test we found out that his thyroid wasn’t working properly, something that could easily be treated if he would eat and he also had kidney damage. They said we had weeks or months with him. He disagreed.
If you have ever met Pancho, you know that he was a very stubborn dog. If he didn’t want to do something, it wasn’t going to happen. People who lived on my street even got used to me picking him up to finish a walk because he wanted to walk further and I had to go teach a class or direct a show…but Pancho was on his time, not mine. See, he was the boss.
This wasn’t the case when we rescued him. We chose to treat him like royalty because when he rescued him, we learned he had been abused for the first five years of his life. When he first came home, if there was a loud noise, he c\would climb under our bed into a corner and hide so well that we could barely see him. The beeping of our toaster oven terrified him, so we got rid of the toaster oven. Fireworks…forget it. The first time he heard them, he tried to climb my leg, so I picked him up and carried him back to our apartment.
The shelter told us he never made sound, and they didn’t know if he ever would. So, I would sit with him and make howl sounds, lay on the ground with Yoda the dog and Pancho and bark. Then one Saturday, I was doing homework on our beautiful porch and the city alarm system went off (normal Saturday testing). I heard the smallest croak of a howl at my feet. I looked down and there was Pancho, full eyes closed, nose in the air, howling with the tiniest voice I’ve ever heard. Well, I stopped my homework and howled with him. Then I put the siren sound on my phone. I would howl with him several times I day. Then he barked. Once his voice was strong enough, Pancho never stopped making sound. You would think he was being quiet, but if you leaned down and listened really close, he was always making a very quiet sound. If he was awake, he was…well, I thought of it as humming. He was also very very smart. I was even able to teach him how to have an inside vs. outside voice.
He loved Yoda the dog so much, that he started squatting when he peed…mimicking her. She wouldn’t have it though, so she started raising her leg when she peed, and he returned to peeing like a dog. He wasn’t leashed trained, and I’d like to say I trained him, but really, Yoda did. They would walk together and Yoda would press her body on his showing him how to walk on a leash. They would walk to the front of our apartment complex, running when they saw the staff or heard someone call their name. They loved Arbor Station, as did we.
When we moved into our house, he loved rolling in the grass, watching all the people go by in the floor to ceiling windows. The reason we picked the house. Windows our little dogs would watch the world from. Even our house, we chose for our dogs. I mean, why not. Dogs are so full of love and trust and beauty. Why shouldn’t they have the best view, the best life, the best experiences?
A week before Pancho died, we went out to dinner in our new home. It wasn’t even a question if we would bring him or not. The question was “which dog friendly restaurant has an sunset view.” When traveling where he could come, there was never even a thought of choosing a non-dog friendly town, or travel accommodations. We’d drive home from Christmas so he could come. We’d do anything for our dogs, especially Pancho. He was part of our family, we were part of his pack.
If I didn’t have to get ready to go to work I’m pretty sure I could write all day. I have so many stories about this pup who we had for way too short a time. But, I’d do it again.
Actually, I will do it again. So will Denny. We need a minute, but we will rescue more dogs who had rough starts, we will spoil them and show them that life is good, we will make sure the days of pain are behind him, and even if it breaks our hearts, we will let them go when it’s time.
Pancho was the most magical, amazing, stubborn, regal, beautiful, lovely, awesome, best dog. I miss him. My Panchito, all the love in the world in one beautiful little guy. I will always miss him.
Leave a Reply